A rough diamond is an unprocessed, unpolished diamond. Perhaps you have already held a rough diamond in your hand – and not even noticed it. It’s true: in its original form the king of jewels looks utterly unimpressive. The untrained eye has difficulty recognizing a rough diamond and its authenticity. When unpolished, the precious stones resemble a piece of colorless, cloudy, milky glass, or even a yellowish-brown pebble. Only when cut and polished correctly is its beauty revealed.

Mining diamonds in a land before our time

As the saying goes: Diamonds are forever. And so they are, because not only the beauty of the precious stones is eternal, it also takes half an eternity before diamonds can sparkle in your ring or necklace or as an investment in your jewelry case. Over a billion years, to be exact. In a fascinating process, gaseous carbon is formed into precious gemstones at depths of several hundred kilometers under the earth’s surface. Diamonds are created only under enormous pressure and extremely high temperatures. And only then does volcanic activity bring the natural beauties to the earth’s surface, ready to be mined as rough diamonds.

Dig until you see the sparkle? Easier said than done. It is not easy to distinguish a single rough diamond among many small pebbles. Real treasures are very rare. In primal volcanic springs, rivers, and mines diamond hunters remove stone and sand and then wash the pebbles and search through them, looking for valuable gems. One of the world’s largest diamond deposits is located off the coast of South Africa where countless diamonds have been washed ashore over the course of billions of years. With our support of the Kimberley Process (trading ban against smuggled diamonds financed by war) and our membership in the “Diamond Dealers Club of South Africa” and the World Federation of Diamond Exchange we promise you 100 percent conflict-free diamonds.

What is hiding behind the inconspicuous surface? Only when carefully polished does a diamond reveal its exquisite sparkle and true value. Only years of experience allow determination of the authenticity and quality of a rough diamond beforehand. For this reason private buyers seldom see the king of gemstones in its unpolished state. Those who are curious and who want a very personal piece of jewelry have to mine diamonds themselves. Otherwise, after they are found, the unprocessed precious pebbles go to the diamond exchange, and from there they reach diamond processors the world over. There the gemstones are cut and polished until they shine, and only then are they taken to goldsmiths and jewelers. Benguela Diamonds offers you the adventure of mining your own diamonds on a Diamond Safari. Dive from the South African coast with our professionals who show you how to recognize rough diamonds. As a very special souvenir you can then have your personal treasure of the sea cut and polished into a beautiful jewel!